The Curious Incident in Which Jared Met the Boy in the Third Row
by AppleAndLettuce
Summary: Jared spends a lot of time watching the boy in class-who he quickly finds out is named Richard-and slowly Jared became fond of his voice and presence. Basically that one college au that has an autistic Richard Hendricks
1. Chapter 1

Jared was a happy guy. He appreciated everything that he has received and thankful for the opportunities he has had. He was getting his B.A at Vassar College in Economics, and eventually transferred to Stanford for his fourth year. He was thankful for finding people to talk to right after his transfer: Aly Dutta and Jason Sutton. They were also seniors, but they were getting a degree in Computer Science. Jared wouldn't call them friends necessarily; they were the ones who sat with Jared occasionally at lunch, and would have small conversations. He is thankful for the classes he takes, as he would have never met Richard were it not for the fact that they both ended up in the same Linear Algebra class in room 4-1011 with Professor Graham.

Linear Algebra was a regular maths class; regardless of being on two very different paths in life, there they were sharing one classroom. Linear Algebra may have been a slightly more advanced mathematics course then Calculus 3, but it still had a possibility of different majors, even if most were junior Math majors, or Engineers, or Physicists for that matter. Jared wondered what major Richard had.

Jared sits in the eleventh row, but Richard is right up front, at the third row and Jared wonders why the area Richard sits in is so alone. It's as if people intentionally sat a row or two behind him, or sat with a gap of seven chairs to him.

By the third week, Jared really gets a good look at him then for the first time, and notices the unusual ticks Richard had. He was always writing, or typing on the computer or rubbing his wrists in a particular manor. Every class, Richard was either coding in his laptop as the lecture went on, or aggressively writing something down on his notebook. When he wasn't doing that, he'd be tugging at his sleeves or rubbing his wrists. Jared could count the times he saw Richard actually look up at the Professor in the lecture. Immediately Jared realised that Richard was probably a CS major or a Software Engineer to be that invested. He knew that Aly and Jason would also sometimes pull out their laptops to fix their code in the middle of lunch, but they weren't as obsessive as Richard seemed to be. He didn't even notice if Richard was actually taking notes or paying attention to the class.

Jared spends a lot of time watching the boy in class- who he quickly finds out is named Richard-from then on out, as he seemed like a very interesting person. Of course, Jared would only observe him if he finished writing down all of the key notes in each slide.  
He notices the way Richard looks kind of young and boyish, speaking as if he was apologetic for everyone who had to hear his voice. He stuttered from time to time, words spilling out of him. Richard's never wrong when he opens his mouth, although he certainly is often quiet. Slowly Jared became fond of Richard's voice and presence.  
Their teacher certainly seems to like Richard more-so than he does other students, and Jared wonders if it's just pity for a student so clearly different from the rest of them, until he notices that he always smiles when Richard speaks, like he's talking to an old friend. Like he's talking to someone who understands, almost. Jared likes watching that part especially.  
Richard was one of the last people to leave the class, so Jared never got to see him leave or randomly bump into him leaving class. Every now and then he would see Richard around the campus, but not as much as Jared hoped for.

Jared eventually got to see Richard leave the classroom, as he had a question and stayed after class to ask the Professor. Richard waited until there were a handful of people in the class when he began to put his laptop away.

"Goodbye uh-Doct-Professor Graham." Richard stated with an awkward wave towards the professor. The professor looked away from Jared and gave Richard a bright smile, and a wave back.

"Goodbye Hendricks."  
Richard gave a curt nod, bit his lip, and adjusted his satchel and went towards the door.

"Thank you Professor." Jared gave him a smile, and went towards the door, hoping to catch up to Richard.

Once he reached the door, he saw Richard approach a shorter brunette man.

"Richie! Hey, you ready to go buddy?" He asked as he gave Richard a hug and grabbed his left wrist as they walked towards the stairs.

Jared then came to a realisation that Richard might already have a boyfriend.

After a holiday, Jared finally got the courage to sit next to Richard. When he began to approach Richard, some students nearby began to follow him with their eyes. Once he reached a seat next to Richard, Richard flinched and rejusted himself as Jared began to pull out his laptop.

Richard didn't look back at who sat next to him, he just cleared his throat and continued to code.

Jared finally understood why people didn't sit so close to Richard a fourth way into the lecture. Richard randomly made the smallest of noises. He would hum a single note when he would rub his wrist, and stop when he began to type again. Richard was quite a fast typer, and Jared could hear a constant clicking on the keyboard and an occasional mutter to himself. Jared couldn't help to find that quite cute.

Richard caught Jared looking at him near the end of class, when Richard was humming. He stopped, and looked at Jared, then blushed before looking back at the computer. Jared smiled immediately, knowing that Richard has made Jared's presence something he is fully aware of now.

Because of the fact that Jared sat next to Richard, he began to appreciate the other man's intelligence even more. Even though Richard was quiet, he had a quick brain that probably didn't shut up. When the Professor would ask a question, Richard almost immediately knew the answer, and muttered it under his breath.

* * *

"Frick." Jared muttered to himself one day. The Professor was explaining partial integrations, and the history of it when Jared wrote the example down wrong, without knowing where to solve the mess.

Richard must have noticed his fellow struggling, as soon afterwards he cleared his throat and said, "You forgot to add +c, and you took the derivative of the wrong equation. We are taking the derivative of acceleration, not the position."

Jared was surprised by the reply he got from Richard, as Richard had never really talked to Jared forwardly. He was so excited, that he didn't know how to reply to Richard. "Oh uh, thank you so much!" Jared replied as he looked back at the other man with a blinding smile.

"Mmhmm." Richard replied, rubbing his wrists, then writing something in his notebook. Jared couldn't read a single thing Richard would ever write on the notebook, as it was chicken scratch.

"Hey Richard," Jared called out as he waited for Richard to leave.

"Oh-uh, yeah?" Richard looked back while they walked towards the door.

"Thank you so much for the help. This sure is a hard class huh?" Jared asked as Richard pushed the door.

Richard frowned, and looked at Jared, still avoiding eye contact. "Not really." He then began to scan the hall until he found what he was looking for, and began to walk towards the man. The guy looked at their interaction, frowning a little, before looking back at the programmer.

"Richie! Hey, we should get going, we are running a little late to Erlich's dinner, but that's okay, we will get there soon enough." Ron greeted, giving Richard his full attention before pulling Richard into a hug.

Richard tensed up a little before saying, "No." Ron immediately let go of Richard, and grabbed his wrist.

"Okay?"

"Okay." Richard replied, and they soon began their ritual.

Jared wondered if Richard's boyfriend had realised how Richard had a secret admirer.

* * *

"Jared, right?" A guy asked as Jared walked into his Abnormal Psychology class. Jared looked around the classroom, and realised that he recognised who called him out. It was Richard's boyfriend. Jared knew that the guy's face was familiar, but couldn't remember from where.

"Yes, hi there." Jared gave him a smile, as he walked towards the guy.

"Ay, hello! I'm Ron LaFlamme."

"Nice to meet you Ron." Jared replied as they shook hands. "You're Richard's partner, right?"

Ron laughed, "I guess you can put it like that."

Jared nodded, a bit disappointed by the fact that it was official: Richard had a boyfriend.

"Come on, become my buddy too." Ron stated as he gestured for Jared to follow him. "What major are you?"

"Economics, you?"

"Law, or I guess Pre-Law. Same thing though." He smiled, and found a seat. "Year?"

"Senior." Jared replied as he organised his spot.

"Same. Nice to see you man." Ron stated before he greeted another student.

"Is Richard also a senior?" Jared asked after consideration.

"Nah. Boy genius is a sophomore." Ron replied. "Have to take this dumb course for requirements." He continued as he took his laptop out.

Jared nodded, and smiled. Soon into the lecture, Jared realised that Ron was far more talkative and just social on average compared to Richard. He was also quite popular amongst their peers, it surprised him that someone so shy like Richard would date such a talkative person. He realised that Ron was quite a cool dude. Once the lecture was over, and Ron almost immediately began to pack up, Jared thought that it was the end of their conversation.

"Nice to meet you Ron."

"Hey you too Jared." Ron replied as he began to walk towards the exit, before he paused. "Hey actually Jared," He looked back down the stairs, where Jared was walking up.

"Yeah?"

"I forgot I was gonna talk to you about that.." He began as he walked down to meet Jared. "Remember the last class you had with Richie?"

"Yeah." Jared nodded, a little worried that Ron was a mind reader who knew that Jared might be a little too fond of Hendricks.

"Don't take that conversation badly. Richie probably didn't understand that you were trying to make conversation with him, so he simply answered the question. Just try again, he's a chill dude." Ron explained.

"Oh. Okay." Jared replied, relieved that Ron couldn't read minds.

"Okay, now that that's done, I must go, again nice meeting you Jared!" Ron called out as he quickly went back upstairs towards the exit.

* * *

The next class Jared had with Richard was one of the most memorable. Jared went to class a few minutes earlier, hoping to get there earlier than Richard and plan out a conversation starter(s) to try to have a conversation with Richard. Once he got there, he realised that Richard had the same idea, as he was already sitting in his spot, typing away.

"Hi Richard." Jared greeted as he walked into the row, moving towards his spot. Richard hummed, and then replied, "Hi."

Jared sat down and began to prepare for the class.  
"I am uh-I'm Richard Hendricks. I'm a sophomore majoring in CS. W-what about you?" he asked.

Jared noticed that after several weeks of observing (read: stalking), they had never actually exchanged names. They knew each other's name because of the professor, but never bothered with introductions.  
"Well nice to meet you Richard Hendricks. My name is Jared Dunn. I am a senior in Economics. I transferred from Vassar."

Richard nodded, and looked at his notebook. "It must be nice to be a senior. You know? You'll get your degree very soon."

"Yeah. I am very excited, but that means I have to start paying my student loans and… getting internships and other stuff. I think I would rather continue school." Jared explained. "And you don't have much left anyways. Those two years will fly."

Richard hummed, and nodded, "Yeah. I heard. Ron uh, the uh- Ron's going to immediately into Law School after this year because of the loans. He doesn't want uh-or plan to start with them just yet." Richard awkwardly laughed.

"That's a smart choice." Jared commented. "Are you aiming for a masters?"

"Nah," Richard shook his head. "If I am being honest Jared, I don't even know if I am going to finish my Bachelors."

"I understand. This is quite hard." Jared replied.

Richard bit his lip and nodded, then went back to typing on the computer. After class, Richard packed up sooner, and followed Jared to the door.  
"I will see you." Richard commented as Jared pushed the door.

"It was a pleasure to talk to you." Jared stated, walking with Richard towards Ron.

Richard gave a curt nod, and approached Ron.

"What's up Jared?" Ron greeted, waving at Jared. Jared smiled and waved back.  
"Richie, hurry, I have to pick something up from Stanford Law School. The office closes in like twenty minutes." Ron greeted as he once again grabbed his left wrist, and headed to the stairs.

* * *

The next time Jared saw Richard, it was in the coffee lounge, which was surprising because he rarely saw Richard out of the class. He was making himself coffee, unaware of the fact that Jared walked into the room. Jared was about to greet him when Jason and Aly walked into the Lounge. Richard somehow was aware of their presence, as after looking back at the door, he shifted, and muttered.

"Brogrammers." Richard muttered. "Oh no no no no noooo.."

"Ay uhhh double macchiato for me dude." Jason stated as they walked towards the coffee machine.

Aly approached Richard for a coffee cup. "Hey Rico, have you been working out?" He asked as he touched Richard's arm.

Richard flinched, and pulled away, "No, no I have not. I-I don't have time to even if I wanted to, I am too busy working on my website. I just don't want to end up as a Hooli lifer you know? I don't want to be there forever." Richard rubbed his wrists together and looked up, avoiding them as much as possible.

Jason and Aly looked at eachother, then back at Richard. "Uh yeah, working for the most innovative company in the world with, top pay, vested stock options, I can see why you wouldn't want that." Jason stated.

Richard nodded and bit his lip, rubbing his wrists harder. "Yeah, you're like an artist." Aly replied, "An entrepreneur."

"An iconoclast." Jason stated.

Richard awkwardly laughed, "I don't know. Uh-maybe."

"Dude we are messing with you. But we really wanna help you with your site. What's it called?" Jason asked.

"Uh-Zelle." Richard stated.

Aly looked at Jason, and Jason looked back. "Dude that sounds amazing."

"Yeah." Aly stated. "Why don't you shoot it over to us and we can take a look at it? Maybe we can help."

"Uh really?" Richard asked, slowly pulling out his phone.

"Yeah!"

Richard nodded, "Okay. Yeah-I mean it's always good to have another person look at it." He began to send it to their emails. "That's uh-sent it."

Jason and Aly nodded, before laughing. Richard looked at his surrounding, and then nodded, "Ohhhhhhh." He stated, before rubbing his left wrist hard. "You guys were making fun of me."

"Dude," Jason began as Richard walked away.

"Noooo." Aly replied. "Ricky,"

"Yeah Ricky," Jason said, "Come back!"

Richard looked back for a second and said, "You know it's actually Richard, but that's…" He stopped and walked away. Jared frowned, and looked back at the two guys.

"Oh Jared, there you are! Bro, you should have come and met Rico." Jason gestured to Jared.

Jared frowned, and walked towards them. "Yeah. I know him. Why…..how do you know Richard?"

Aly laughed, "Rico is some CS student. He's an intern at Hooli, even though he's barley a sophomore."

Jason nodded, "Weird dude that guy. Hey, let's go get lunch." He pat Jared's arm, and they began to walk towards the exit.

"Aren't you getting coffee?" Jared asked as he pointed to the machine.

"Nah, we just wanted to mess with Rico." Aly replied. Jared's frown deepened as he saw a mug-Richard's mug-with coffee on the machine.

* * *

Next time Jared saw Richard, he felt as if he should apologise. Richard doesn't talk to people, yet when he does, some are very disrespectful. Once Jared sat down next to Richard, he took a deep breath and looked at him. "Hey Richard."

Richard darted his eyes towards him, then back. "Jared."

"I saw what Aly & Jason did last time. I am so sorry for their actions. They were very mean for doing that." He explained.

"I um… It's fine. It's normal, and I mean what else do you expect, they are brogrammers." Richard bit his lip and laughed, "They are meant to be douchebags you know?"

"I didn't know they could be so harsh, especially because you didn't give them an incentive to." Jared explained.

"Well thank you.. Jared." Richard looked back at the tall man next to him.

"Of course." He replied. "I noticed you accidently left your mug at the lounge."

"Oh yeah." Richard nodded, "You know I didn't even realise until like-a few hours later."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah, which sucked because it took longer to find, but uh.. I found it."

Jared smiled. "I noticed." He looked towards the cup next to the notebook.

Richard rubbed his wrists together, thinking. A few minutes later, Richard hummed, and then stated, "W-we should uh-exchange numbers. J-just in case you know? Or for things like with what-the programmers, or like the-"

"Yeah! I agree! Here," Jared pulled out his old iPhone.

"Oh that was… eas-efficient." Richard stated as he reached for Jared's phone. He quickly typed out his phone number and texted himself.

"There we go… okay." Richard handed Jared back his phone.

Jared smiled brightly. "Thank you Richard. I hope to hear from you soon!"

Richard gave him a half smile. Jared was so happy and distracted for the rest of class, thinking of excuses to text Richard.

"Bye Jared." Richard waved at him before getting up and leaving class, at an unusual time.

"Oh uh, bye Richard!"

"You know the drill buddy." Ron stated as he gave Richard a jacket.

"It's uh-it's raining?"

"Yup. I knew you forgot your sweater so…" Ron stated as Richard put on the jacket. "Let's go Richie."

* * *

 **Comments are always appreciated!**


	2. Chapter 2

Jared: _Hey Richard. I was wondering if you wanted to go get coffee with me?_

Richard: _Sure. When_

Jared: _I am not sure. Whenever you are available_

Richard: _What about after class? Ron has to be at Stanford Law School for the whole day on Wednesday_

Jared: _Sounds great! :)_

"Hello Richard." Jared greeted as he approached their spots.

"Jared." Richard replied as he reached his seat and sat down.

"How are you?" Jared asked as he put his satchel down.

"Umm..." Richard hummed. "I am okay. How are you?"

"I am doing amazing." Jared smiled. Richard nodded, and then looked back at the computer.

For the rest of class, Richard didn't talk to Jared.

"Are you ready to go?" Jared asked as class ended.

"Uh yeah.. Let me just-" Richard cut himself off as he saved his code one more time.

Jared nodded and smiled. "You know I always wondered how you pay attention to the lectures while coding. It's quite calming to see you type away."

"It's a thing.." Richard explained, "It's not that hard, you just have to get used to it."

Jared nodded, and opened the door for the two. "So Ron's out for the day?"

"Yeah, he has-is starting some internship, since he is about to start like this summer." Richard explained, "I am glad that he got to-uh started early, I knew he was fixated on it."

"I mean it sounds like a good offer." Jared replied as they headed towards the stairs. "So I only know the coffee shop like a block from here, but if you have a different request, we can go there instead."

"Yeah.." Richard began to step to the lower floor. "Mitch's? They are a bit far walking but they are quiet and have a great environment."

"If you want to go there, we can go. I don't mind walking there with you." Jared replied as they reached the lower level.

"Oh hey Richard." Bighead greeted as he approached Richard.

"Bighead? Hey! What are you doing here?" Richard asked as he walked towards the guy.

"I got lost. This… this isn't supposed to be my building." Bighead explained.

"I can tell." He replied. "Where are you going?"

"Zansvoths." Bighead replied. Richard looked confused and asked, "Wait who-"

"The chemistry professor?" Jared cut in.

"Uhhh yeah. I had to meet her in her office." Bighead looked up at Jared.

"Oh her office is actually near the admissions office...which is strange, I know." Jared stated. "So you are way off."

Bighead chuckled. "Yeah, I guess so. Hey, who are you?"

Richard gasped, and cut in. "Oh right. That's uh.. That's-Jared this is Bighead, Bighead this is Jared."

"Hi Jared." Bighead awkwardly reached for Jared's hand.

"Hi… Bighead." He replied as they shook hands. Richard bit his lip.

"So I'll see you at home?" Bighead asked as he looked back at Richard, to whit he nodded and looked back at the exit.

"Okay bye Bighead." Richard stated before walking away. Jared looked at Bighead, and gave him a wave before catching up to Richard.

"He seems like a nice guy." Jared stated as they began to walk off campus.

"Yeah he is. He's been my best friend for years. We grew up in Oklahoma together." Richard explained.

"Oh really?" Jared looked back at the shorter man.

"Yeah. He also just so happens to be my roomate." Richard commented. By the time they arrived to the coffee shop, Jared didn't know what to talk about.

"Soo… what do you recommend?" Jared asked as they both got in line.

"They uh-the coffee is good. Umm, honestly anything is. Their Chai tea is pretty good."

"Alright then."

"This is a good place." Jared commented as they sat down at a table in the corner.

"It's quiet." Richard stated as he pulled out his computer.

"Yeah.." Jared looked back at Richard, who was furiously typing. "How do you do it?"

"How do I do what?"

"You type so quickly. How do you… plan?"

"I think about it beforehand. I'm normally thinking about it even when I am not at a computer." Richard explained, looking up to see Jared admiring him, to which he blushed and looked back down.

"I think you are amazing." Jared blurted out. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to make you uncomfortable or anything I-"

Richard cut him off by saying, "No! No, it's fine. You aren't making me uncomfortable. I think that you are quite amazing yourself."

"Oh thank you Richard." Jared smiled.

Richard bit his lip, and pulled out his notebook before writing something down.  
Jared eventually pulled out his laptop and began a spreadsheet that was due soon.

"...Why did you transfer?"

"I'm sorry?"

"Why did you transfer? To Stanford. Especially for your last year. Wouldn't it make it a bit harder to get the degree? There are different requirements for each school." Richard explained as he moved the laptop to one side.

"Oh." Jared looked up from the computer. "Well, Vassar was amazing. I loved their Economics program, and their Arts program but.."

Richard had a confused expression. "So what's the point?"

"But it didn't feel right. I-I wanted to experience more. I wanted a dangerous path for a little. I wanted to meet new people. And, I mean this is Silicon Valley, this is the best place to be right now." Jared explained, "I had to take a few more classes, yes, but I feel like it's all worth it."

"I get it." Richard nodded. Everything was going fine until about forty minutes later when Richard abruptly got out of his seat.

"Shit. I have to go now." Richard stated as he put his laptop away.

"Wait what?" Jared looked up, very confused. "Richard what's wrong?"

"The terminal is on the wrong station. It wasn't the code. It was the program used for the code." Richard explained as he pushed in his chair. "I have to go now."

"Okay, okay." Jared replied, "Do you want me to walk with you to your dorm? Are you okay with that?"

Richard hesitated before saying, "Yes."

"Okay, alright, let's go then." Jared replied as he quickly packed up and followed Richard out. "Where do you live?"

"I live in the apartments in Governor's Corner." Richard commented. "Oh my god. I am so stupid! Why did it take me so long to realise the problem? Are you kidding me? I just wasted so much time!"

"At least you found the error, it-"

"Ugh…." Richard rubbed his left wrist and unconsciously walked faster, which was fine for Jared.

"Richard it's fine, what you are about to do is not going anywhere, and it's going to work out." Jared explained as he slowly began to speed walk to catch up to Richard, who began to run.

"I know, I know, I know, but that's not enough!" Richard replied.

Once they arrived, Richard was out of breath. "Wait….Jar-Jared hold up." Richard pulled out his key and opened the door. He quickly went inside and left Jared out. About thirty seconds later, Richard came back to the door without anything.

"Thank you." Richard stated as he got closer to Jared.

"Oh it was my pleasure Richard. I don't care where we go, as long as we are together." Jared smiled.

Richard nodded, and got even closer. "Umm." He rose his right hand and pat Jared's right shoulder. Jared smiled even wider.

"This might be out of line, but… can I have a hug?" Jared asked as he opened his arms.

Richard laughed. "Yes." He awkwardly shuffled closer to Jared. Once they hugged, Richard tensed up.

"I am sorry if you don't like the way I am holding you. Please tell me to move to your comfort. Or if I am making you uncomfortable." Jared explained as he loosened his hold.

"No. I like your touch. But not there." Richard explained.

"Oh. Okay." Jared moved his arms a little higher up.

"No." Richard stated.

"Here?"

"No."

"Okay, here?"

"That feels wrong."

"Okay, what about here?" Jared asked and as he then moved his arms lower.

"Wait." Richard replied, and he moved a little, and began to relax. "Okay."

"Okay?" Jared asked as he tightened his grip.

Richard hummed. "Okay."

They stood by the door for a few minutes, and Richard's breath evened out, and he pushed himself away.

"Okay." Richard looked at the floor. "Thank you….Jared."

"It was my pleasure Richard."

"Okay. Bye!" Richard hummed, and left.

"Bye Richard." Jared stated to the door, slowly walking away. As soon as Jared took the steps to the ground floor, he heard two other men walking into the complex.

"Fuck you Gilfoyle, you don't know shit."

"Oh I am sorry, who the fuck did Richard say knew more-"

"Okay fuck you, thats only one example. Besides that's all you know."

Jared frowned, and proceeded.

* * *

The next time Jared saw Richard, it's in the dining hall. Richard was sitting at the furthest table along with a few people. Jared was meeting with Jason, as he had the same science class project.

"I still think my margin of error is smaller, so we should use my method." Jason explained as Jared sat down.

"If you really want to, we can, but I think I used the Chi Square correctly." Jared explained.

Jason sighed, but agreed. They finished their meeting about fifteen minutes later.  
"Alright, I'll see you bro." Jason stated as he took the papers and left.

"Alright, goodbye." Jared replied as he waved, and got up, and looked back at the furthest table, to which Richard and his friends were still there. Jared hesitated, and eventually began to walk towards the table.

"H-hey Richard." Jared greeted when he was close enough to the table.

Richard looked back, and saw Jared.  
"Oh hi Jared." He had a half smile on his face.

"How are you?" Jared asked.

"Jared! My dude! Sit." Ron greeted as he gestured towards the seat next to Richard.

"Okay." Jared stated as he approached the seat and sat down.

"I am okay, what about you?" Richard asked as he shuffled around in his seat.

"I'm a bit stressed, nothing I can't manage." Jared replied with a smile.

"Hmm. Richard, who is this weird looking man doing, sitting at my table?" Erlich asked as he inspected Jared.

"Oh right." Richard nodded, "Guys this is Jared, Jared that would be Erlich, Dinesh, Gilfoyle, Bighead and Ron."

"Well it's a pleasure to meet you all." Jared looked around.

"Of course it is." Erlich replied, "Who the fuck are you anyways?"

"Well I am Jared Dunn. I have a class with Richard." He explained as he stiffened up a little.

"Guys." Richard looked at them.

"Hmmmm." Gilfoyle replied, looking straight at Jared.

"Aren't you one of the brogrammer fuckers?" Erlich asked.

"I'm sorry?" Jared asked.

"You hang out with brogrammers, so you must be a brogrammer." Dinesh explained.

"Oh. No? What is this brogrammer term?" Jared asked.

"Pieces of shit that write almost as shit code as Dinesh, who also work out." Gilfoyle explained.

"They mostly work at Hooli, and they don't necessarily have to code, they can set up shit software like you." Dinesh looked back at Gilfoyle.

"My software can take so much more if you-"

"Okay guys…" Richard shook his head side to side. "Basically a brogrammer is a douche who thinks that they are better than everyone else because they work out and drink protein shakes."

"There we go." Ron nodded.

"Oh." Jared looked around. "Yeah no, I'm not a brogrammer? I don't write code. I'm no CS Major."

"Oh." Gilfoyle looked straight at him, "So what the fuck are you doing at Stanford?"

"Exactly. Fuck you Jared." Erlich stated.

"I am getti-"

Bighead cut off Jared, "Wait, but Erlich, you aren't even a student here. And Ron is a law major, so…?"

"Hmmm." Erlich rolled his eyes. "Well fuck all of you, especially you." Erlich pointed at Jared. "My job here is done." He stood up from the table, and left.

"Wait, Erlich, I left my phone at your house!" Bighead stood up and followed him out.

"But… you didn't do anything." Richard commented, looking up at Erlich leaving.

Ron smiled and grabbed Richard's wrist. "That's the point."

Jared looked back at Richard.

"Wait, so you didn't answer our question." Dinesh stated, looking back at the economist. "Are you a brogrammer or…?"

"Oh! Yeah, no. I.. I am far too slender to be a brogrammer, and again I can not code, so I do not qualify for that." Jared shook his head.

"Oh shit!" Ron looked at his phone, as an alarm went off, "I'm out, I'll see you guys later." Ron stood up and pat Richard. "Bye Richie."

"Oh fuck," Richard looked at Ron. "It's already twelve thirty?"

"Bye Richie!" Ronn stated one more time, before waving and half running out of the building.

The rest of the people awkwardly stared at each other, until Gilfoyle finished his drink and stood up. "I for one will not stay and create a cult right now. I am leaving now, without saying bye to you Jared."

"Wait, Gilfoyle," Dinesh stood up and followed him out.

Richard nodded, and tugged at his sleeves. "So…."

"Do you want to go out with me?" Jared asked. "Wait! No! Not like that! I meant.." He awkwardly chuckled before blushing. "I meant, would you like to… I don't know.. Do you want to just hang out?"

Richard stayed quiet for a second, before nodding, "Yeah, sure. I mean, I have a few hours to burn, or more like three, I have a class at 3:30."

"Okay." Jared nodded. "Umm, do you wanna walk around?"

"Uhh.." Richard stood up, "Yeah, s-sr-ure. I mean, what's the worst that can happen?"

* * *

Jared and Richard from then on occasionally texted. It would normally be about class, asking questions even though they were both proificent and understood the recent concept well.

Next time Jared saw Richard was when their Linear Algebra class came up again. Jared walked towards the class a few minutes earlier, hoping to see Richard. When he approached the class, he came to see Bighead and Richard walking towards it.

"Oh hey guys!" Jared greeted as he walked towards the two.

"Oh fuck!" Richard half yelled as he ran towards the nearest bathroom.

"Ummm?" Jared looked back at Richard leaving and then back to Bighead.

"Oh that's just him…" Bighead nodded, "I think he ate cilantro at lunch."

"Cilantro?"

"His stomach is weird, it doesn't digest Cilantro." Bighead explained.

"Ohhh." Jared nodded, mildly concerned. "Should we… should we go check on him?"

"Oh yeah." Bighead began to walk towards the bathroom.

"Richard?" Bighead asks as they walk into the nearest men's bathroom.

"Hey Richard, are you okay?" Jared asked, going further into the restroom, to whit they received no response.

"...Hold up." A groggy voice replied a hot minute later.

"Richard?" Jared followed the voice.

"Yeah.. lemme just.." Richard gagged.

A few minutes later, Richard got out of the stall.

"Sorry. The goddamn cilantro."

"I told you not to eat the-" Bighead stated as Richard walked towards the sink.

"Yes. Goddamn it I already heard you Bighead." Richard replied, rinsing his mouth.

"Hey I am just saying." Bighead defended.

"Are you okay Richard?"

"Yes." Richard. "It's fine. Everything is fine." Richard replied. "Oh fuck, I think we are late."

"It is 12:45." Bighead looked at his phone.

"It's fine, take your time Richard." Jared stated, hesitating, almost as if he wanted to touch Richard to comfort him.

"Oh fuck." Richard rinsed his mouth one more time. "Yeah we should get going."

"Take your time, it's fine. We can be a little late." Jared touched Richard's arm. "It's alright."

* * *

Two lectures later, Richard walked into the lecture ten minutes late. He almost ran to his seat, adjusting his satchel. He was wearing different clothes. He wore black straight jeans, and a t-shirt with black boots, which was something that Jared found weird as he had never seen Richard out of a button up with a sweater over it.

"Richard? Are you okay?" Jared asked as Richard set his satchel on the floor and opened his laptop.

Richard gave no response.  
"Richard?" Jared asked as he touched Richard's shoulder. The reaction was almost immediate. Richard flinched away from his touch, and then began to humm.

"Are you okay? I'm so sorry! I didn't know!" Jared stated as Richard began to humm louder.

As whispers got louder, Richard looked around, and became quiet. He bit his lip and tapped his leg. Ten minutes later, Richard shuffled and rubbed his wrists roughly, humming very quietly. Jared was so worried, but didn't know how to help Richard. Soon after, the right door for the lecture room entered. Ron searched for Richard, and quickly stepped down, and sat next to Richard.

"Richie, I am so sorry! I know, fuck I know buddy. Let's go, yeah? I brought clothes. Let's go. Fuck. I really am so sorry Richard." Ron calmly stated as he reached for Richard's wrist. "Fuck, wait, are you bleeding? Shit. Richie, come on, lets get you cleaned up yeah?" Ron gently tugged at Richard to get up.

Richard shook his head, but eventually got up with Ron. The professor looked up at them, but didn't mention it, almost as if he knew what was going on.

"Jared can you watch his things? He'll be back soon." Ron asked as Richard and him got out of the row.

"I'm so sorry." Ron stated as he looked at the students nearby. "Okay, Richie come on."

Half an hour passed when the door to the lecture room opened one more time. It was Richard by himself. He walked straighter, and calmer. He had changed clothes; he was back with a olive button up and grey zip up hoodie, and blue skinny jeans. He soon approached his seat and sat down.

"Hey. I'm glad you're back." Jared commented. "I'll send you what you missed, okay?"

Richard looked back at Jared, and nodded.  
"Alright, sounds great." Jared replied, looking back at the professor, relieved that Richard got what he needed.

This was the first time Richard had gone nonverbal with Jared, and it had gone great.

* * *

 **Again, comments are always appreciated!**


	3. Chapter 3

It was a cool Thursday afternoon, now a week before midterms. Richard and Jared were walking side by side on campus.

"I am glad that you finished. I know that you were basically working on that for ages!" Jared said as they walked past a few people.

Richard looked down at his phone and texted Jared.

Richard: _I know right. It took awhile, but I finished. Now I just have like four more classes to study for._

Jared quickly read it, and nodded. "See I wish I could do the same. I still have to study for the rest of the classes. I think I still have to study for LInear Algebra, even after our study session yesterday."

Richard nodded, and looked around the campus.  
"See, I think this is one of the reasons that I moved to Stanford. I love the weather, and…." Jared looked around. "Just everything! I mean, it's cloudy, but I don't think that it's much of a problem."

Richard: _I think it's going to rain._

"Really?" Jared looked back at Richard. "Maybe. Do you still want to come over? If so, we should probably start walking towards my house, especially if it's going to start raining." Richard nodded, and stuck this thums in each jean pocket.

They both walked to the apartment complex in comfortable silence, with Jared commenting about the surroundings, or animals nearby. When they had about a block to walk, it began to rain.  
"I think we might have to walk a little faster." Jared suggested as it began to rain a little heavier.

They both luckily arrived to Jared's apartment when the rain began to drop quickly. "Come in! You can leave your shoes near the door." Jared quickly stated as he let Richard in and shut the door behind him. "I think I'm going to make some tea, if you want some." He quickly took his shoes off.

Soon after, Richard looked around the flat, looking at the pictures on the wall.

Richard: _It's very blue_

Jared laughed at the text, and looked back at Richard. "Yeah. I guess I really like the colour."

Richard looked at him and nodded, looking to the right corner of the living room, where a piano took up the space. He hesitated, and began to walk towards it, then pressed a single high key.  
"That would be my piano." Jared stated as he followed Richard. Richard pulled out his phone.

Richard: _Can I hear you play?_

Jared blushed, "Oh I can't play that well I...I barely started so I can't do much.

Richard: _But you can nonetheless play something right?_

"Well yes but still." Jared explained. Richard shook his head and got closer to Jared. Jared's eyes began to dilate as Richard approached him. Jared cleared his throat, "Right, so um-I have not showed you the rest of the house, if you wanna follow me, I can give you a tour, even if it's a bit small."

"So this is the kitchen," Jared and Richard entered to a small countered kitchen with the basic necessities. "It's very small, I know, but I am happy with it." He walked towards the door. "This is the balcony." Richard looked at it, then back at the kitchen.

"This is the closest bathroom." Jared stated as they walked back into the living room and into a hall. "Just in case."

Richard opened the door to the bathroom and looked in. "And to the left is the office, to the right is my bedroom." Jared commented, opening the doors to both. "Aaaaand that's the tour of my flat. I know, not that big, but I am comfortable in it. Plus, it was a great deal as a college student."

Richard nodded, and slowly went back to the living room.

Richard: _I'll eventually want to hear you play piano, you know that right?_  
Richard walked towards the piano, and sat down at the bench, and played a C major scale with both hands.

"Do you play Richard?" Jared asked as he approached.

Richard: _Ron's sister tried to show me once when she came over. I literally only learned like the warm-ups_

"That's great Richard, it's always good to know even a little." Jared commented. "I think I'm finally gonna do the tea I mentioned a while ago." He pointed towards the kitchen. "...Be right back."

Eventually Jared came back into the living room with two cups of Green Tea as Richard continued to mess around with the piano.  
"This is yours." Jared stated as he handed Richard a cup.

Richard looked up and smiled, then grabbed the cup.

Richard: _Thank you._

"It's my pleasure Richard." Jared replied as he sat at the couch. Jared turned on the TV and Richard messed with the music Jared had laying out near the piano, while Richard's phone continued to buzz, notifying him of texts.

"You're quite popular right now huh?" Jared commented. Richard picked up his phone.

Richard: _Not really. It's just Ron lol. He's telling me a story, which probably means that I still have like a few more texts to receive before I should probably read them_

"Ahhhh." Jared nodded, "I don't think I have met a better couple than you two."

Richard looked up from his phone very confused.

Richard: _Couple? Wdym?_

"Well, I think that you two are good together. Isn't he your boyfriend?" Jared asked.

Richard looked more confused, and shook his head.  
Richard: _Ron & I aren't together. We're just good friends. Why would you think we are together? _

"Well," Jared explained, "I asked him if you guys are partners, and he said that I could say it like that. That implies that yes, you guys are in fact together."

Richard: _I think you read that wrong. No, Ron is not my boyfriend_

"Wait really?" Jared asked. At this moment, Jared was excited and nervous, because now he knew that he had a chance to get with Richard, but at the same time was scared for the future, and what it could hold.

Richard nodded.  
Richard: _He's a great guy though. Very nice. I hope I end up with someone like him, but not Ron specifically._

"I am pretty sure that you will Richard."

Richard: _Really?_

"Of course." Jared nodded, "I think that you are quite a catch Richard. I don't know who wouldn't want to be with you."

Richard blushed, and stood up, and looked everywhere but at Jared. Eventually, a stack of books caught his attention.

Richard: _Dangerous, nice_

"Oh right? I just read a few of those books." Jared commented, pointing towards the books.

Richard: _I like how many bird books you have. Do you really like birds?_

"Oh, I like birdwatching. A lot. I like to read up on the kinds of birds near the area and stuff." Jared explained.

Richard looked back, and nodded.  
Richard: _I like looking at documentaries about how some birds can navigate with a little biological thing they have where they can sense the magnetic force field the earth has_

"Oh really? I just like to learn about them. I honestly just find them to be amazing creatures." Jared explained. "If you want, I can pull up a documentary on birds."

Richard nodded, and sat down as far as he could from Jared on the couch. About half an hour into the documentary, Richard stood up to get his satchel, and then sat back down, and pulled out his laptop.  
Jared looked back and smiled. Richard, looked back, and pulled out his phone.

Richard: _Is this alright? Fuck. I know I didn't ask, sorry_

Jared grabbed his phone. "Oh no it's fine Richard! Do you wanna watch a different documentary? I mean, it is a bit boring but not-" Jared got cut off my a ping.

Richard: _The documentary is fine. I just like to do something while watching television, if that makes sense._

"Okay then, we are fine." Jared replied. Slowly, the two unconsciously got closer together. Richard would move himself to adjust the laptop, and get slightly closer to Jared, and Jared slowly moved closer by shuffling around in his seat. They however, became aware of their closeness by the time that their knees touched. Richard quickly pulled back his legs, but didn't move away, so Jared didn't do anything.  
After the documentary, they simply began to watch Hamilton's Pharmacopeia, not really paying attention to it, just enjoying each other's presence-and coding in the case of Richard-while sinking deeper into the couch.

Richard: _I think I have to get going. Ron is coming over so I can edit some of his applications to different internships._

Jared nodded, "Sounds great. Tell Ron that I will happily help him out too if he ever needs it."

Richard: _I will, he will probably appreciate it, he needs all the help he can get._

As Richard began to pack up, Jared looked out the window, appreciating the noise and the environment outside.

"Wait Richard, are you taking an Uber or….?" Jared asked as he looked back.

Richard shook his head no. "Wait are you walking?" Jared looked mildly concerned. "I know that it's probably like an eight minute walk, but it's nonetheless far away. Plus it's raining still, and quite hard I must add." Jared explained.

Richard looked out the window, and sighed.

Richard: _Fuck. I mean, I guess I can, but I have to stop by the library to print some stuff_

Jared still looked worried. "I mean you're wearing a sweater, yes, but it's a fabric that absorbs the water, and what if you get sick?"  
Richard pulled out his phone. Jared bit his lip, and made a suggestion.  
"What if I let you borrow a windbreaker of mine? So you can wear something on top of the sweater?"

Richard looked confused, and eventually shrugged.

Richard: _Sure mom. Btw though, I am very specific, and if I don't like it, I will leave without it, okay?_

"Alright, deal." Jared smiled. "Thank you."

They soon went to Jared's room, and Jared began to scavenge for his collection of windbreakers.  
"What about this one?" Jared grabbed the smallest fitting one he had and gave it to Richard. Richard took a deep breath and tried it on.

Richard took it off and rubbed his wrist, shaking his head no.

"Okay, what about this one? It doesn't have the same cloth inside." Jared commented.

Richard shook his head.

"What about this one?" Jared got to a slightly more worn out jacket-with Vassar College's emblem-trying to find a different texture from the ones Richard tried. Richard hesitated, and put it on. He moved around the jacket, and rubbed his wrists with the cloth on top, and then nodded. Jared smiled. "Alright, now I am okay with you walking home."

Richard smiled, and nodded, slowly walking back to the living room with the jacket on. Jared's smile widened as he saw the way the jacket fit Richard, as it was a bit too big and long for him, which made the jacket reach half way through his thigh, and the sleeves scrunching up near his hands. Richard soon grabbed his satchel one more time, and headed towards the door.

"Alright, I'll see you later." Jared stated as he followed Richard. "I had a really fun time hanging out with you. I-I'm glad you had the chance to come over, again it was fun!" Jared opened the door.

Richard: _I had fun too. Thank you for everything. Including the jacket._

"It was my pleasure Richard, I hope I see you soon!" Jared commented as Richard walked out.

Richard gave a half smile, and waved awkwardly, before turning around and going home.

The whole way to the library and home, Richard kept on smelling the jacket. It was a new smell, especially so close to him. Jared's natural smell calmed Richard down, and made him have butterflies in his stomach.

* * *

"Hey Richard! You took forever to get here!" Bighead greeted as the door opened. "Hey… isn't that Jared's jacket?"

Richard made a noise, trying to play it off.

"I mean it says Vassar College on the bottom, and he's the only person I know who transferred here from there." Bighead explained.

With that, Richard got mostly everyone's attention, and they followed him with their eyes as he approached.

"Does that mean you are still hanging out with that fucking brogrammer?" Erlich asked as Richard sat down next to him.

Richard: _Well…. Yes,_

Richard: _Erlich, you know this. You were the last person I talked to before going to his house. I literally told you._

"Well I didn't care. I was looking at Professor Morris, a soon to be colleague who walked in. Whatever you said was probably not relevant to me." Erlich explained.

Richard looked confused.

Richard: _Then why do you care?_

"Because he's a piece of shit." Erlich explained.

"So are you now fucking him? See, I told you Gilfoyle, Richard isn't just very awkward and a failure at being a human near females, he's just gay." Dinesh looked back at Gilfoyle.

"Bullshit." Gilfoyle replied, "Richard are you fucking him?"

Richard hummed, and then frowned.

"Good enough, Gilfoyle give me my fucking money!"

"No fuck you, Richard hasn't said shit!"

The door soon opened. "Hey guys!" Ron greeted as he walked into the apartment, "Alright Richie, so I printed what I so far have for my applicatins, if you can read it." He quickly walked towards the kitchen.

Richard did a quick nod towards Ron.

"Okay, it's one of those days." Ron commented. "Cool." He looked around, and then looked at the jacket Richard wore. "So what are you guys up to?"

"We are figuring out if Richard is with Jared, and trying to get my money that we agreed on." Dinesh explained as he stared at Gilfoyle.

"Fuck you."

Ron looked confused. "Okay, what about no?" He went over to Richard, "So shall we?"

Richard nodded, and quickly stood up.

As soon as they left, Erlich scoffed, and continued to smoke. "I am just glad that we can all agree that the hippy fuck named Jared sucks."

* * *

 **Comments are always appreciatedddd**


	4. Chapter 4

"Hey Richard!" Jared greeted as Richard walked towards his seat. It was midterms week around Stanford, causing an extended line for any coffee shop nearby, and somehow the atmosphere felt tense, causing everyone to have a severe case of anxiety.

"Jared. H-hi." Richard replied, setting down his satchel. "How are you? Are you ready?"

Jared nodded, "I've literally studied all morning so I think I will be fine. What about you?"

"Well I just finished my English midterm like ten minutes ago, so I think that I will be fine." Richard replied. "I-I'm quite confident in my abilities right now."

Jared smiled, "That's great, I didn't know you had a class before hand."

"I don't." Richard replied, sitting down.

"Oh." Jared frowned and nodded, "Well, I wish you the best of luck!"

"Thank you. You too." Richard replied as he rubbed his wrists. "I don't like midterms."

"Nobody does, but it's the struggles we all have to go through unfortunately." Jared chuckled, sitting down.

"Oh fuck. I forgot to bring your jacket." Richard winced as he pulled out his phone, where he received a text from Bighead that reminded him.

"Oh it's fine Richard, I don't mind. I mean, you saw how many I have." Jared shrugged.

"Still...fuck I mean. I am going home after class, I guess I can drop it off at yours?" Richard suggested.

"Yeah, that works for me." Jared replied, "Thank you."

"I mean you're the one who lended me the jacket, so I should thank you instead."

Slowly, more students began to pour into the room, starting the midterm.

* * *

"Hey! I wasn't expecting you so early. Come in." Jared greeted as he opened the door for Richard.

"Oh uh thanks." Richard replied as he shuffled in, looking around. "I like your house. It's uh…. It's nice."

"Thank you." Jared commented. "Do you want anything? Coffee? Tea? Juice? Water?"

"No I'm good, thank you Jared." Richard awkwardly handed him the burgundy jacket. "Thank you for the jacket."

"I mothered you into that, so you have no reason to thank me. I want to thank you for letting me do that." Jared smiled. "Do you want to watch another documentary with me?"

"That would be good. I mean, I could kill some time, and I need the white noise." Richard agreed, slowly sitting down to the left on the couch, Jared following suit.

Jared turned on a random documentary, thinking of Richard and listening to the laptop's gentle hum. The clicking soon approached a halt, causing Jared to glance back at Richard. He was biting his lip, unfocused.

"Richard," Jared began, "So how are you doing?"

Richard blinked, and eventually became aware. "I'm sorry?"

"How are you?" Jared asked.

"I am okay. Sorry." Richard mumbled as he adjusted himself on the couch. "I uh… I got out of it for a little."

"That's okay, and I am glad that you are okay." Jared stated.

Richard nodded, and looked back at the computer. "By the way, do you know when he's grading?"

"Who? Professor Graham?" Jared asked.

"Yeah. I think he said but I didn't listen."

"Next week I believe." Jared replied. "Which is still quite early."

"I guess, yeah." Richard replied. About half an hour later, Jared stood up.

"I think I am going to make lunch. Will you join me?" Jared asked. "I think I am just going to make some wraps, so not too much, but good enough."

"Uhhh…." Richard looked back at the time his laptop displayed. "Yeah, I would like to join you."

"It won't take long. If you want to help, that's also okay." Jared invited. "Or you continue doing what you are doing."

"I...I am good." Richard declined. "Ron has told me before that I would help out even more out of the kitchen." He chuckled, "Which makes sense. I suck a-at basically everything a normal human can do."

Jared frowned, "Don't say that. I think that you are one of the most charming and talented people I have ever met. I know you can do everything a normal person can, and more."

Richard blushed, and rubbed his wrist. "Oh uhhh….." He looked back at the laptop, then back at Jared, and bit his lip. "You should start cooking." The second Richard blurt that out, he cringed and wished he could get swallowed up by a black hole that would magically appear on the floor.

"You know I probably should." Jared nodded, gave Richard a smile, and walked into the kitchen.

Richard bit his lip, and shook his head, disappointed at himself.

"Food's ready." Jared called out as he walked back into the living room. He walked into Richard humming, and pacing around the living room, hands in a fist.

"...Richard?" Jared called out quietly, slowly walking towards Richard.

Once Jared was in Richard's direct eyesight view, Richard acknowledged him by looking at his shoes and staying still.

"Hey, Richard, I finished. If you want to join me, or if you want to wait that's also okay. Or anything you want to do honestly." Jared commented.

"...O-okay." Richard bit his lip, and walked towards the couch. "No."

Jared thought about it for a second, and understood. "Alright. We can wait."

"Okay."

"Okay."

"...Okay." Richard nodded. "Can I hug?" Richard shook his head, "I mean can I-" Jared cut him off, and sat next to Richard.

"Oh of course Richard! I would love to hug you." Jared replied as he adjusted himself. Richard angled himself towards Jared, and slowly leaned on him. Jared wrapped his long arms around him, trying to adjust himself to what Richard approved of last time.

"No."

"Okay, what about now?" Jared went a little lower.

Richard grabbed his hand and physically adjusted Jared. "Okay."

"Okay?"

"Okay." They both slowly tightened their grip on each other, enjoying each other's presence. They held each other for about four minutes when Richard giggled. He outright giggled.

"Ohhhhh. Oh! OHH!" Richard smiled and giggled again, pulling away from Jared and grabbed his laptop from the side.

"Richard?"

"I-I...so stupid!" Richard turned on the computer. "I got carried away with the….." He went back to his code, and became silent.

Jared just stared at Richard in action. About ten minutes later, Richard tugged at his sleeves and looked back at Jared. "Okay.. that's okay. It worked out. Alright."

Jared smiled, "As my friend Gloria says, we sometimes have to give our work some space, or else it will go far away from us."

"I don't know what I did. Like, I-I didn't even really go away.. In a sense-way." Richard replied.

"Well, then hugging helped." Jared replied, "I am glad that we did, as I think it contributed to your break through."

"Yeah. That was….good." Richard put his laptop back to sleep. "Weren't you talking about lunch?"

"Oh yes. It's ready for whenever you are ready." Jared replied. "Do you wanna go now?"

"Yes." Richard replied as he stood up.

"Alrighty then, come on." Jared stood up and made his way towards the kitchen.

* * *

"Thank you Jared." Richard looked up halfway through the meal. "You have been very helpful."

"It is my pleasure Richard. Thank you." Jared replied with a gentle smile.

Richard chuckled, and looked at Jared's hair. "Normally people leave once they understand that there is definitely something wrong with me. And that's okay. You haven't."

"And I don't plan to." Jared replied, "And what do you mean about something wrong with you? There is nothing wrong with you."

"Yes there is." Richard played with his food. "I mean, I think it's fairly obvious, I think I gave the normal signs."

"There isn't anything wrong with you." Jared replied, "Whoever says that is completely wrong and-"

"Jared. Come on, you know that I'm…. autistic, and that is when you have a different thought and I don't know.. I guess-" Richard quickly replied.

"And who said that it's a bad thing to be different?" Jared replied.

Richard scoffed, and drank some of his water. "Whatever man. Still…." Richard didn't finish his sentence.

"Well I think that you are great, and wonderful, and talented and just-" Jared cut himself off when he noticed how uncomfortable he made Richard. "Just yeah."

Richard bit his lip and cleared his throat.

* * *

"...Jared?" Richard looked back to Jared who was fixing his shoes.

"Yeah?" Jared began to walk towards Richard, looking around his direction.

"What bird is that?" Richard pointed at a nearby tree, that had a yellow and grey bird that had landed on one of the tall branches.

"That would be a Lesser Goldfinch. It's quite a common species of bird in California. They permanently reside in this area." Jared explained.

"Ahhhh." Richard gave a curt nod.

"Now, shall we go further? We barely left the parking lot." Jared pointed towards the parking lot, that was a few feet away.

"Right." Richard nodded, "To where?"

"I am not sure." Jared replied. "How much are you willing to walk?"

"..."

"Alright." Jared smiled, amused. "Come on, this is the closer one." He began to walk to a downhill trail.

"This is going to be so new experience wise. I haven't left Palo Alto and like San Francisco in like….. a year."

"Yes, yes it is."

"But you've been here before."

"Yes, but with you everything is a new experience." Jared replied, looking back at Richard.

Richard looked down and blushed. Jared smiled even brighter. As Jared and Richard slowly made it downhill, Jared thought about the beginning-their Linear Algebra class in room 4-1011 with Professor Graham-and everything that followed. He was glad he met the boy in the third row.

Together, they both knew that they were going to be okay.

* * *

 **As always, thank you much for reading, have a great day and hopefully I made yours and peace out!**

 **-Apple**


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